I have seen, on more than one occasion, that some have pitched dual packets or vials of yeast in their 5GAL batches.

I'm going to be brewing up NB's 20min Pale Ale extract kit next week and it comes with (1) vial of WLP001. I ordered a 2nd vial of WLP001 since I had heard/seen online that some have pitched two vials to get the yeast count up there.

Any reason why this would hurt or hinder something in my batch or is it okay to do but *might* be overkill? Sure the cost of an extra vial would be a downfall but that wasn't a main concern. Looking for pro's and con's of dual pitching of vials/packs.

Pitching 2 vials/packs is certainly an option to get your pitching rate up to the level you want it. But, it's generally more cost effective to make a starter from one vial rather than purchasing additional vials. I highly encourage you to determine the correct pitching rate for your beers using a calculator like Mr Malty:

For that kit, it looks like you want a minimum of 1.7 vials worth of yeast depending on how fresh your tubes are. With most styles, you're far better off overpitching than underpitching (within reason), so that little extra bit is fine. I wouldn't worry about overkill.

Thanks for the reply! This is my first brew ever and I'm hoping it turns out well! I will def. note the link you have above. I will also post back how this turns out as I'm going to document everything I can.

-ZacElgin, IL

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Sounds like you're on your way to great beer right from the start! Arguably the two most important factors in making great beer are the two that are most overlooked by new brewers and you're already taking care of the first one on your first brew. The second is fermentation temperature control. This is huge! Always know what temperature range works best for your yeast and try to keep the temperature in that range. You can find it here: http://www.whitelabs.com/beer/homebrew/listingsWLP001 likes 67-73f but many ferment it cooler to keep the flavor cleaner.Keep in mind that the temperature of the fermenting beer will be several degrees warmer than ambient temperatures. You can keep it cool by placing your fermenter in a water bath and tossing in frozen bottles of water as needed. A wet T-shirt fitted over your fermentor with a fan blowing on it works well. Or simply placing it in a cool corner of the basement can work well. Happy brewing and welcome to the hobby.

I know it came with wlp001, but dry yeast may be an option as well. Depending on the gravity, you may only need 1 packet, which is significantly cheaper than 2 vials. The US-05 is just as good as WLP001 or Wyeast 1056.

Either way, I always keep a couple packets of US-05 and Nottingham in the fridge just in case.

Congrats on your first brew...you should alreaady be planning you next one...and the one after that...and the one after that...

Thanks for the reply! This is my first brew ever and I'm hoping it turns out well! I will def. note the link you have above. I will also post back how this turns out as I'm going to document everything I can.

-ZacElgin, IL

Your making a smart decision here. Most beginners under pitch the first several beers. I think you will be pleased with the results. Just be sure you try and keep the fermentation temp cool and don't pitch your yeast until the temp of wort is cooked below 68 degrees. In fact, if you can get it down in the low 60s that would be best. Be sure to aerate properly. Shaking the fermenter for 30 minutes would not be too much.

And +1 to dry yeast comment. Us-05 is a very nice strain and 1 packet would give you the cell count you need for thus batch.

Some homebrewers now want to pitch more yeast in 5 gallons then a pint starter. An often quoted number is to pitch 1 million cells/ml/degree Plato of beer, which equals about 250 billion cells for 5 gallons. That is okay, more cells are not detrimental until about 400 billion cells. For those that enjoy yeast culturing and want 250 billion cells, one vial can be added directly to 2 liters of wort starter, and after two days of incubation, will be equal to roughly 250 billion cells. Is this necessary? Every brewer will have a different opinion, but here is some information:

a. The source of the 1 million cells/ml/degree Plato figure: Professional brewery literature. Most professional breweries re-pitch their yeast because they have the fermentor design and facilities to reuse yeast. So most brewery pitches are actually re-pitches, and only 2-10% of brewery pitchings are using freshly propagated yeast. One of the main sources of contamination in a brewery is the pitching yeast. So in order to out-compete other organisms, large quantities of yeast must be pitched. When propagated by a professional yeast laboratory, the yeast is grown under sterile conditions, sterileoxygen and special nutrients are used to improve cell construction and performance. This does not occur in a brewery, so numbers they use to "pitch" take into account the inadequacy of their brewers yeast. The yeast is also unhealthy due to prolonged growth without oxygen and nutrients. In addition, brewers yeast will always contain some contaminants that need to be out-grown, and 1 million cells per ml per degree Plato has been found to be the best marriage of high pitching rates and no negative flavor effects (Higher pitching rates can lead to unhealthy yeast and a "yeasty" off bite). Liquid yeast grown by a professional laboratory should have no contaminants, so out competing contaminants found in the pitching yeast is not a concern.

One thing that contributes to flavor contribution in beer is yeast growth. If less yeast is pitched into beer, more yeast growth takes place, so more flavor compounds such as esters are produced. Depending on the amount produced, this is how pitching rates can have a direct effect on flavor profile. If 5 to 10 billion cells are pitched into wort, this definitely has a negative flavor impact in terms of higher ester levels and potential for bacterial contamination. But does a pint starter worth of yeast (30-50 billion cells) pitched into beer tasted different then 2 liters worth of yeast (250 billion cells)?

Big Al, et al, brewed the kit today. Ended up with an OG of 1.045 as far as I can tell from the read. Pitched the yeast at 78 degrees after some vigorous shakes / rotations of the carboy. This was done around 2:30PM today. It's 11:11PM and I have the carboy down in my basement. Just to test the temp down there I set a glass of water there overnight and took the temp this afternoon. It was 68 degrees so I'm going to assume that is the ambient temp in the cellar/room. I did pitch 2 vials of the WLP002. When I cracked open each vial they were under tremendous pressure - they almost fizzed all over. I was able to get 90% of both vials into the carboy. I bunged up the carboy and tossed on the airlock. I'm getting some activity as shown in the video below. Is that airlock setup right from the looks of the video? 9 hours in and I'm getting this kind of activity - that's good right? The beer tasted great from the OG reading tube sample. Sweet and hoppy.

Sounds like you're on your way to great beer right from the start! Arguably the two most important factors in making great beer are the two that are most overlooked by new brewers and you're already taking care of the first one on your first brew. The second is fermentation temperature control. This is huge! Always know what temperature range works best for your yeast and try to keep the temperature in that range. You can find it here: http://www.whitelabs.com/beer/homebrew/listingsWLP001 likes 67-73f but many ferment it cooler to keep the flavor cleaner.Keep in mind that the temperature of the fermenting beer will be several degrees warmer than ambient temperatures. You can keep it cool by placing your fermenter in a water bath and tossing in frozen bottles of water as needed. A wet T-shirt fitted over your fermentor with a fan blowing on it works well. Or simply placing it in a cool corner of the basement can work well. Happy brewing and welcome to the hobby.

That's great; you have fermentation. Like others have said, the important thing now is to keep the temperature down. If the ambient temp is 68°F, the beer temp will probably peak in the high 70s or even low 80s, so get some cooling on there ASAP.

The bubbling is still going on. The temp on the side of the carboy is 70 or 71. Foam has really settled down and puffed up a lot but not close to the airlock so no need to swap to a blow off tube. Good smells are still coming out of the airlock. Going to wrap another wet towel around it and let it stew and bubble.